The Prince Albert Police Service will soon begin using the drone pictured to aid in investigations and active incidents. (Submitted photo/P.A. Police Service))

By Teena Monteleone

Eye in the sky

Prince Albert Police Service adds drone to fleet of crime-fighting tools

Oct 15, 2025 | 1:06 PM

Criminals running from police in Prince Albert will have to look over their shoulder and up in the sky in the future.

The police service is implementing the use of a drone, which Chief Patrick Nogier called the ‘wave of the future when it comes to a policing response.’

“I’m pleased to announce that for the last four to five months, we’ve been working on a drone application for the city, and we have an actual drone in-house. We own it now. It cost around $10,000. It has some of the latest and greatest with respect to video feeds and infrared technology,” Nogier said.

The drone came with a $10,000 price tag. (Submitted photo/P.A. Police Service)

The drone will be used to assist in investigations like the recent fatal motor vehicle crash involving a pedestrian.

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“An accident reconstructionist will be able to take a look at the surrounding area from above, take pictures and [gather] information that can turn into evidence.”

It will also be used for search and rescue operations, pursuits, crime scene documentation and situations involving high-risk or armed suspects.

“A really important part is that officer safety component that we want to benefit from because we know, in today’s environment, that a lot of individuals right now are doing what they can to harm police,” Nogier said. “And there’s more than ample evidence to show that a drone has saved the life of an officer because it gives us that real-time glance and look at what’s going on in certain areas and what they may have as far as accessibility to a weapon.”

About five Prince Albert Police Service officers are currently receiving regimented training through Transport Canada that will give them the authorization to pilot the drone.

“We’ve been very fortunate in forging a relationship with the RCMP, who have run some phenomenal programs out of the province of Saskatchewan, most notably in North Battleford, where they’ve been able to really push the parameters of what a drone can provide the community and that’s where we want to go,” Nogier said.

“We want to get to a place where a drone is our first responder.”

The drone will give police a tactical advantage and improve safety for officers. (Submitted photo/P.A. Police Service)

The Battlefords RCMP has used drones since 2023. That’s when Saskatchewan RCMP began the Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS) Expansion Project with the objective of having at least one RPAS pilot and one unmanned aircraft in every detachment in the province.

Cpl. Steve Bell, who oversees the program in the Battlefords, said the biggest impact has been on the increased safety to officers thanks to the tactical advantage of having an eye in the sky. He said the drones have sped up some files, particularly ones where searching is involved, and Battlefords RCMP use the RPAS a couple times a week.

“It depends on the calls coming in,” Bell said. “Technologies are advancing. We see those changes in policing too, and it’s definitely just another tool at our disposal that helps us investigate things and resolve them maybe a little bit quicker and safer.”

Police in the northeast have also seen success with drone use. In June of last year, RCMP used one to help rescue stranded hikers east of Carrot River.

Nogier said the drone program will be utilized on a regular basis in Prince Albert within months.

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teena.monteleone@pattisonmedia.com

*This article was updated on Wednesday afternoon to include actual photos of the Prince Albert Police Service’s new drone.